Barcelona SC has confirmed the death of Mario Pineida (33 years old), a player for the Ecuadorian club, who was reportedly shot and killed in the city of Guayaquil, Ecuador. Hours before his murder, Pineida had denounced on social media the club's failure to pay his salary and that of other first-team players since December 2024. In a joint statement, the squad affirmed that they continued playing out of "commitment, dedication, and absolute respect for the institution and for the club to rectify the situation." They also threatened not to appear for the next match. Initial reports from the Ecuadorian press also indicated that Pineida's wife was also killed, but the player's cousin denied the news in a video posted on social media.

It's a setback for Daniel Noboa. Ecuador has rejected all the proposals presented by the president in a referendum that sought a profound reform of the country's Constitution. The "no" vote was resounding on all four proposals: allowing the establishment of foreign military bases in the country, permitting the financing of political parties with public funds, reducing the number of members of parliament, and convening a constituent assembly to ultimately draft a new Constitution.

It's the drug of greatest concern today. Over the past four years, the global cocaine market has continued to grow, and in 2023, according to figures released by the United Nations this Thursday, cocaine will reach record levels in production, seizures, consumption, treatment, and related deaths," Pietschmann, a researcher with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) since 1997, said. World Drugs Report 2025, cocaine production soared by 34% in 2023, reaching over 3,708 tons. In 2019, half that amount, 1,784 tons, was recorded. The increase in recent years is mainly due to Colombia, which is the world's largest producer and accounts for nearly 70% of the market. The hectares where the cocaine is planted—equivalent to 525,000 soccer fields—have grown far below total production, indicating greater concentration and higher crop yields.

Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa has renewed his mandate. this Sunday at the polls With almost 56% of the vote, she faced Rafael Correa's successor, Luisa González, who obtained just over 44% of the vote and has said she does not recognize the results, alleging electoral fraud. The progressive candidate has announced that she will ask the National Electoral Council (CNE) to conduct a recount and open the polls: "Ecuador is experiencing a dictatorship," she proclaimed from the electoral headquarters in Quito, and spoke of the "most grotesque fraud in history." The president of the CNE, Diana Atamaint, was quick to confirm the results that declared Noboa the winner and said that "democracy is strengthened when the voice of the people is respected."

The president of Ecuador, Daniel Noboa, renewed his mandate this Sunday in the second round of the country's elections With almost 56% of the vote, she faced Rafael Correa's successor, Luisa González, who obtained just over 44% of the vote and has said she does not recognize the results, alleging electoral fraud. The progressive candidate has announced that she will ask the National Electoral Council (CNE) to recount the votes and open the polls: "Ecuador is experiencing a dictatorship," she said from the electoral headquarters in Quito, and spoke of the "most grotesque fraud in history." The president of the CNE, Diana Atamaint, was quick to confirm the results that declared Noboa the winner and said that "democracy is strengthened when the voice of the people is respected."

Ecuador votes this Sunday in the second round of presidential elections that highlight the polarization the South American country is experiencing. Daniel Noboa, the current president—currently the youngest in the world at just 37—and candidate for the National Democratic Alliance (ADN), is vying for the position with Luisa González, Rafael Correa's heir and candidate for the Citizens' Revolution (RC). After a first round in February in which they were separated by only 17,000 votes, Noboa won with 44.15% of the vote compared to González's 44%.The rest of the candidates were excluded, and it will be their votes that will define Ecuador's future this Sunday. The key issue in these elections and the main concern of Ecuadorians is clear: an unprecedented insecurity crisis related to drug trafficking, which began after the pandemic and now ranks Ecuador as the country with the highest number of violent deaths in Latin America.